Futures Pointing To Initial Rebound On Wall Street

The major U.S. index futures are currently pointing to modestly higher open on Tuesday, with stocks likely to move back to the upside after ending yesterday’s lackluster session moderately lower.

Stocks may regain ground following the lower close on Monday, although trading activity is likely to remain subdued as Election Day gets underway.

Polls show an extremely tight race between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump, suggesting the outcome of the presidential election may not be known by the end of the night.

The results of House and Senate races are also likely to be in focus, as the makeup of Congress could affect how much the next president can accomplish.

“With the race still too close to call, it seems investors aren’t ready to reposition portfolios until we get the result,” said Dan Coatsworth, investment analyst at AJ Bell. “However, the moment we get clarity on the winner could lead to some sharp movements in the market as investors play catch-up with the election.”

Traders also continue to look ahead to the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy decision, which is due to be announced on Thursday.

The Fed is widely expected to lower interest rates by another 25 basis points, but traders will be looking to the accompanying statement for clues about the likelihood of future rate cuts.

After turning in a strong performance during last Friday’s session, stocks showed a lack of direction over the course of the trading day on Monday. The major averages bounced back and forth across the unchanged line before eventually closing in negative territory.

The Dow underperformed its counterparts, sliding 257.59 points or 0.6 percent to 41,794.60. The Nasdaq fell 59.93 points or 0.3 percent to 18,179.98 and the S&P 500 dipped 16.11 points or 0.3 percent to 5,712.69.

The choppy trading on Wall Street came as traders seemed reluctant to make significant moves ahead of the U.S. elections on Tuesday.

The more notable move to the downside by the Dow came as Intel (NASDAQ:INTC) and Dow Inc. (NYSE:DOW) came under pressure following news they will removed from the blue chip index.

Meanwhile, shares of Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA) rose on news the AI darling will replace Intel in the Dow prior to the start of trading on Friday. Paint maker Sherwin-Williams (NYSE:SHW) also surged higher following news it will replace Dow.

Reflecting the lackluster performance by the broader markets, most of the major sectors showed only modest moves on the day.

Airline stocks showed a substantial move to the downside, however, with the NYSE Arca Airline Index tumbling by 2.5 percent.

On the other hand, energy stocks turned in a strong performance, as the price of crude oil surged after OPEC+ decided to delay plans to increase output.

Reflecting the strength in the energy sector, the Philadelphia Oil Service Index jumped by 1.7 percent and the NYSE Arca Oil Index climbed by 1.4 percent.

Intel (NASDAQ:INTC)
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